The Birthplace of Kung Fu: The Shaolin Temple
Entrance to the Shaolin Temple
The Shaolin Temple is only 9 kilometers from my Kung Fu school. It is said that Kung Fu began in the Shaolin Temple and that all other martial arts styles (Karate, Tae Kwon Do, etc.) developed from Kung Fu, so the Shaolin Temple could be considered the birthplace of all martial arts. This Thursday my roommate, Marta, and I spent the day there.
The Shaolin temple was actually founded by an Indian monk teaching Buddhism, named Ba Tuo, in the late 5th century AD. Another Indian monk, Ta Mo, came to the Shaolin temple and observed that the monks were very weak and could not perform the rigorous meditation required, so he introduced physical excercises which eventually became known as Kung Fu (meaning hard work and perfection).
The temple has had quite a tumultuous past. It has been destroyed and rebuilt three times and suffered complete death under Communist rule. The Communist Cultural Revolution (1966-1976) was against all matter of religion and martial arts or anything that would allow individuality, resistance, or free thought. If you were seen preaching or teaching anything other than Chairman Mao’s words you were immediately re-educated or imprisoned. This meant the Shaolin Temple was completely shut down and martial arts were not practiced for several decades in China. The temple was not re-opened until 1983 and a series of Kung Fu schools (including mine) sprang up around the temple shortly thereafter when Kung Fu was once again allowed to be practiced and taught.
Today it’s obvious that the Shaolin temple is more of a tourist attraction than a spiritual place of worship. There are T-shirt and refreshment vendors everywhere. There’s a parking lot full of tour buses and group after group of tourists squeeze together for a picture in front of the entrance to the famed Shaolin temple. There’s a cable car that runs to the top of the mountain and even more jewelry and drink vendors once you get there.
However, when you first enter the temple complex (which is quite large) there are Kung Fu students practicing kicks, Tai Chi, and Kung Fu forms. You have to take the good with the bad. Although the Shaolin temple has become a commercialized tourist trap it has also supported the re-birth of Kung Fu in China, one of the great cultural treasures of this ancient country.
Entrance to the temple complex
Students practicing Tai Chi in the morning inside the temple complex
Preparing for a show
Kung Fu stances
Inside the Shaolin temple
Warrior protecting the temple
Grounds of the temple
Marta and I inside the Pagoda forest. Taken by a Chinese woman who may or may not have been drunk by the looks of this photo.
The cable car to the top. Everyone was very excited to see two foreign women and responded with lots of waving and “Hellos!”
The park where we sometimes have training
Taking a break from it all
Tags: Amanda Formoso, China, Deng Feng, Kung Fu, Kung Fu training, Shaolin Temple, Travel
Amanda
Amanda,
From that photo of you in front of the Shaolin Temple, it is apparent you are ready and willing to kick-ass.
The Kung Fu stances look very similar to the stances of the Maoris of New Zealand doing their war dance “The Haka.” I wonder if there is a connection???
Appears you are still having alot of fun on your very exotic journey of Asia.
Stim
If Kung Fu started as a way to increase the strength of the Buddhist monks studying there, why did its originator also teach them how to beat the Hell out of each other? It seems very uncompassionate to kick the ass of your sangha brothers and sisters.
Yikes! Have you seen your traffic report? 1,600 unique page views! More than 14,000 visits! You’re hot!
What? Are your arms too tired to type? Blog, woman, blog!
The Birth of China 2600 BadE to 2300 BadE –
2300 BadE to 1600 BadE –
1600 BadE to 1066 BadE –
1066 BadE to 771 BadE –
770 BadE to 221 BadE –
221 BadE to 206 BadE –
206 BadE to 220 BadE –
265 ad to 439 ad –
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1644 ad to 1911 ad –
1911 ad to 1949 ad –
1949 ad to ____ ad –
The Age of 5 Rulers
Xia Dynasty
Shang Dynasty
Chau Dynasty
Warring States
Qui Dynasty
Han Dynasty
Six Dynasties
Sui Dynasty
Tang Dynasty
Song Dynasty
Five Dynasties
Yuan Dynasty
Ming Dynasty
Qing Dynasty
Republican Era
Chinese Republic
The history of China began long before the Qui Dynasty, but it’s emperor Chin united many of the warring states and joined many parts of the Great Wall ( built in parts against marauding Hans and Mongolian’s ) immuring up to 300,000 Chinese workers into the wall in the belief that it would be stronger against attackers and would be invaders. It was believed that these workers would strengthen the Great Wall with their bones and their spirits. ( This is also the emperor who created the Terra cotta Warriors at the expense of 700,000, yes seven hundred thousand, workers ).
So it is considered that during the time of the Qui Dynasty the Emperor Chin united most of China into one nation. In his quest for longevity, Emperor Chin tried many potions and lotions and slowly poisoned himself with a mercury based longevity drug.
Around 700 years later in 497 ad, in the time of the Southern & Northern Dynasty, the first Shaolin Temple was built.
The Establishment of Shaolin
Towards the end of the 5th Century ad an Indian Buddhist monk by name of Ba Tuo (Chinese Name) was traveling through China teaching Buddhism, helping and guiding those he met. His great wisdom and kindness came to the ears of the Emperor who summoned Ba Tuo to come to him.
Exact details of what happened at this meeting are not entirely clear but is seems that Ba Tuo was offered riches, a place in the palace and encouraged to continue his teachings. Ba Tao kindly declined this offer and asked for a piece of land far away from any ‘civilized’ place in the province of Henan, on the side of the Song sang Mountain. There he was given a large piece of land and the resources to build a monastery in an area called ‘Wooded Hill’ or ‘Small Forest’, which translates to Shaolin in Mandarin or Sil-Lum in Cantonese.
Introduction of Physical Exercise
In about 539 ad, a holy man named Bodhi Dharma (later called Ta Mo by the Chinese) left his monastery in Southern India to spre ad the Buddhist faith to China, later called Ch’an Buddhism. ( Ch’an is the Chinese translation for the Sanskrit word “dhyana” meaning Yogic concentration, also known as Zen in Japanese when it was introduced from China.). After traveling hundreds of miles to reach Northern China and crossing the Himalayan mountains and the Yangtze River, he headed North to Loyang, the capital of Henan Province.
There of course he found the Shaolin Ssu (Temple). It was, 40 years after it was founded, and it h ad become famous for scholarly translations of Indian Buddhist scripture into Chinese. Bodhi Dharma sought entrance to Shaolin but the abbot of the day, Fang Chang would not let him into the temple ( many sought entrance for various reasons ).
Bodhi Dharma was determined to enter and see the Shaolin Ssu. He located to a nearby cave on the side of a mountain ( this cave can be visited when in Henan/Shaolin as well as climbing to the top where a 40 foot Buddha is erected in honor of Ta Mo ) where (it is said) he sat in meditation facing a stonewall. Many versions of this event exist, including;
That he sat facing a wall for most of the next nine years at the end of which Bodhi Dharma ‘s deep blue piercing eyes h ad apparently drilled a gaping hole in the cliff wall. ( we did not find such a hole but we did find what seemed to be a permanent shadow )
That he fell asleep meditating and his eyelids closed and when he awoke, he was so distraught that he cut of his eye lids so that this would not happen again ( since this would be against Buddhist teaching – and he was a devote Buddhist – this is unlikely ).
That he was visited by monks ( initially secretly as they were interested in the ‘foreigner’ ) and was supplied with food and water. In this way he was able to demonstrate his knowledge and skill of Buddhism to such a degree that he was finally ( after 9 years? ) admitted to the into the temple.
Irrespective of which story is true, it is clear that Fang Chang at some time relented and allowed Bodhi Dharma entry into the temple Shaolin.
Upon gaining entrance to Shaolin, Ta Mo ( as he was now called by the Chinese ) saw that the monks were weak and unable to perform the rigorous meditations he expected that Buddhist Monks should be practicing. Whilst meditating they often fell asleep or were very restless and were not achieving inner calm or peace ( a state required to reach Enlightenment, that for which all Buddhist strive! ).
He spent some time in seclusion pondering the problem. Considering the time and health awareness of the period, Ta Mo came to a staggeringly accurate conclusion, that the monks were not fit to meditate. With this in mind he started working on a solution; he created three treaties of exercises.
These in-place exercises were later transcribed by monks as;
“The Muscle Change Classic” or “The Change of the Sinews,”
“The Marrow Washing”
“The Eighteen Hand Movements later named The Eighteen Lohan Shou (Lohan meaning enlightened and Shou meaning Hands/Exercises)
This marked the beginning of Shaolin Temple Kung Fu ( meaning hard work and perfection ). Ta Mo later devised some self-defence movements based on his knowledge of Indian fighting systems ( Bodhi Dharma was born an Indian Prince and was well versed in Yoga and Indian Kung Fu ).
Shaolin Kung Fu
Many of the Shaolin priests were retired soldiers and generals, thus, Ta Mo’s teachings were enriched and refined by these martial art masters and it slowly developed in to a martial art of the hands also known as Shaolin Ch’uan [ Shaolin Fist ] or Shaolin Ch’uan Fa [ Way of the Shaolin Fist ].
Shaolin was not a poor temple by this time and was regularly attacked by peasant armies ( since individuals h ad no chance to penetrate Shaolin defence’s and walls ). Often, to enrich it’s knowledge, Shaolin would invite wandering healers, scholars and now also martial art masters into it’s walls to learn from these by sharing knowledge and skills.
Shaolin became very apt at Kung Fu and in repelling the attacking bandits. Slowly but surly the Shaolin became renown for their martial arts prowess and fighting ability. It is to be noted that not all Shaolin Monks were warrior monks, often they chose to specialize in areas of expertise, much like university professors. Although at this time all practiced Kung Fu, not all were totally focused on the practical aspect of the art, only the Warrior Monks. It is also interesting to note that Shaolin preferred not to hurt their assailants as this would have ramifications for their spirituality in this life and the next!
A mere 30 years later, Shaolin was closed and forbidden, it took some 30 more years, around 600ad, before it was reopened.
The Second Temple
Built around the same time as the Henan Temple, the Fukien Temple was integrated into mainstream Shaolin around 650 ad and became the ‘Second Temple” of Shaolin. It was/is a much larger temple than the one in Henan and served as the second main temple in times where Henan was destroyed or occupied by other than Buddhists and Shaolin.
The 13 Champions
In 698 ad, Emperor T’ai Tsung, of the Tang dynasty, called upon the fighting monks of Shaolin to aid him in his war against General Wang-Shih-Chung, who h ad gathered a large army in an attempt to oust the Tang emperor from the Imperial throne. Li Shimini, the Emperors son, was leading the army against Tang. Wang-Shih-Chung managed to capture the Tang Emperors son and inflicted great damage to Tangs army.
Tang sent a message to Shaolin, asking for help to save his son. 13 monks were sent to answer their emperor’s plea, although in fact it may have been a much larger force (113 monks or some such). Even though the number of Shaolin monks sent was small ( the enemy’s army numbered 10,000 men ) the Shaolin were victorious, the enemy was beaten back and decimated. The Tang Emperors son was saved.
In recognition of their great action T’ai Tsung awarded the monks land, and bestowed upon the temple the title, ‘Number One” temple in China.
Li Shimini, succeeded upon his father death. Remembering how he was saved, a very strong bond was forged between the Imperial court and Shaolin. This le ad to regular interchange and training between high ranking soldiers and graduate Shaolin Warrior Monks saw further development of Shaolin Kung Fu and the integration of the secret Imperial ( Eagle ) Kung Fu into Shaolin knowledge and skills which set the foundation to what later would become the Shaolin 72 Fists.
72 Fists (Movements/Hands/Skills)
A couple of hundred years later a rich young noble and experienced martial artist, entered the Shaolin Monastery and assumed the name of Chueh Yuan. He soon devoted all his studies to the further development of Shaolin Kung Fu and fitness training. Within a few years, he revised the 18 Fists of Lo Han and created what he called the 72 Styles or movements. As this was a very violent time, these 72 Fists were a very effective form of both Strategy and Combat.
His 72 Fists (methods/Skills etc) were so successful that all Shaolin monks adopted his 72 Fists very quickly. They were very effective for both internal and external fitness and incorporated strategy and thought into Shaolin Kung Fu. Much of the 72 Fists remained within Shaolin even as it evolved into the 170 Skills and later % Animal Kung Fu. Chueh Yuan was still not fully satisfied with what he created (and h ad plenty of time on his hands). He went out to teach and learn, looking for Masters of other styles.
This (the Journey Years) later became common practice for Shaolin. Shaolin adepts were sent out to share Buddha’s teaching and help the poor ( much like the founder of Shaolin ). It was also a test, as many would be Shaolin monks were tempted by worldly pleasures and did not return. Those that did became the Priests and brought many new skills, knowledge and wisdom from their travels.
170 Movements
On his travels, Chueh Yuan witnessed a bandit attacking a 60-year-old traveler. He saw how the attacker landed an apparently very strong kick to the body of the traveler with very little or no effect. The old traveler only used two fingers against the bandit’s leg sending the attacker to the ground, seemingly unconscious by the time Chueh reached them. This maneuver obviously impressed Chuan enormously and he introduced himself to the senior. Much to his surprise the old man did not know much of martial arts and what little he knew he h ad learned from the local master Pai Yu-feng.
Pai Yu-feng was a friendly 50 year old and Chuan convinced him to accompany him back to his temple. Over the next few years they, using the 18 fists, the 72 movements and these ‘pressure point grappling/wrestling techniques’, redeveloped Shaolin Kung Fu into the 170 exercises, a mixture of 72 Fists expanded with pressure point and grappling/wrestling/throwing techniques.
The Time of the Ming Dynasty
The time of the Ming Dynasty was another golden area in China’s arts history ( so called because of all the treasures and artwork created in this time but there was also a very dark side to this era, especially in the 16th and 17th centuries ). Many works of art were created that still exist, considered now to be priceless. Philosophy and knowledge was taught to an equal degree. During this time the Shaolin Temples also grew and prospered becoming the centre for teaching, philosophy, history, Buddhism, mathematics, poetry and of course Martial Arts. Monks (from other orders, Daoists), expert warriors, teachers, healers, philosophers, elders, and travelling martial artists could/would gain entrance to Shaolin to share their knowledge in return for Shaolin teaching and shelter.
Each Temple was like a university of Buddhism, health, the finer and martial arts. Each temple h ad several Shaolin Masters who were experts or specialists in a particular area of training, well-being or philosophy. Rich Chinese would send their sons ( and later even Daughters ) to Shaolin to become students ( not priests ) and learn from the best in every field. These students, once graduated would be considered very highly in their local community.
Shaolin training was now very involved and rigorous. The art of separating future Masters from adepts still was in the form of sending them out into the world of temptation for a few years (a bit like Mormons do with their teenagers). But before they would be let out as a Shaolin Monk they would also undergo a series of rigorous tests.
In order to graduate from the temple, they would have to exhibit phenomenal skills and pass through 18 testing chambers in the temple ( which were possibly more symbolic in nature as no evidence was found in any of the Shaolin Temples of any such rooms ). Although it is dramatized in movies, Shaolin would actually be brought to the brink of exhaustion through a serious of 18 tests, 6 physical, 6 mental and 6 spiritual ( thus the 18 chambers ). It is even possible that one of these physical tests, the final one, was the lifting of a hot cauldron with their bare forearms ( each temple traditionally h ad such a cauldron, in the middle of the temple complex and unique to each temple ). This cauldron would not have been plain and would possibly have the raised relief of symbolic animals; which would thus be burnt into the graduating monks arms ( as a reminder to them of their training, learning and final trials ). Varied accounts suggest that these cauldrons may have h ad the following symbols on them;
Wu Tang Temple – A Tiger and Dragon for martial art Prowess
Henan Temple – Dragon and Phoenix for universal balance/Yin Yang
Kwantung Temple – integrated much later in history and there are conflicting accounts of symbolism for this temple.
O Mai Shan Temple – Two Cranes as they were close to the Tibetan border and a healing temple
Fukien Temple – (often used as a Shaolin ‘back-up’, no record of specific symbolism found for this temple)
These marks were the signs of a Shaolin graduate. Not all who entered Shaolin graduated in the full 18 chambers, many were only lay priests leaving the temple well educated but not completed. Especially towards the end of the Ming Dynasty when Shaolin increasingly was involved with training resistance fighters and harboring fugitives.
This is also the time when the original 170 movements were redefined into the 5 Animal Style, Ng Ying Ga Kung Fu.
5 Animal Styles
A martial art expert named Zhue Yuen joined the Shaolin. He noticed that the Kung Fu practiced in Shaolin was unbalanced, tending strongly to the hard external style. Zhue Yuen traveled China in search of other martial art styles and found many which he learned and evaluated. But it wasn’t until he reached the town of Lan Zhau and met Li Sou that anything significant happened.
Li Sou introduced Zhue Yuen to Bai Yu Feng, who was another famous martial arts practitioner. Zhue Yuen was able to convince both to come back with him to Shaolin to develop Kung Fu. Together they redeveloped Shaolin Kung Fu to the 5 animal style ( Tiger, Snake, Dragon, Leopard and Crane ).
Although originally just exercise and Kung Fu styles, over the next few hundred years the Shaolin were able to discover and develop the 5 Animal Style system to be metaphors for human situation handling, interaction, problem solving, planning and much more ( much of this was lost with the second burning of Shaolin and only the external Kung Fu aspect was cultivated and maintained; but more on that later ).
The 4th temple
It is at around this time that the 4th temple was added to the order of Shaolin. The O Mai Shan ( Great White Mountain ) was a devoted library and medical temple. It was located in a very inaccessible area of Szechwan province. Very much like the other temples used to import Kung Fu masters, the O Mei Shan temple imported healers Mai Shan was in close contact with the Crane Temple in Tibet and a major medical temple with books, tombs and scrolls from east and west.
The Invaders
The Great wall, and China’s army, was mostly successful in repelling invaders, but around mid 17th century, invaders from Manchuria, le ad by the Ching Family, ended China’s Golden area, and the Ming Dynasties reign. They slowly but surely and brutally took control of China and systematically eradicated all resistance. Many Chinese nobles, warriors and commoners were forced underground where they sought to oust the invaders and reinstate the prosperous Ming Dynasty.
There were a significant number of factions among the Chinese who aided the Manchu’s against Ming loyalists, in large part because the Manchu’s held to the same ideology, governmental patterns, and social organization as the Ming. By the early 1600’s the Ming dynasty was significantly weakened. It was unable to cope with both its own internal tensions and the militarily strong Manchu’s to the northeast.
An internal rebellion was the direct cause of the downfall of this dynasty ( Chinese rebel Li Tzu-ch’eng seized Peking in 1644 ). That the Dutchmen were able to capitalize on this by being invited to put down the rebellion by a frontier general is largely coincidental. The Great Wall was hardly so impregnable that they would not have been able to invade and conquer the area in its weakened state.
Thus the Manchu’s found the entrance to China and slowly but steadily conquered China. Those that did not wish to conform h ad to either migrate or go underground, some also sought refuge in the Shaolin temples.
Shaolin initially only offered passive resistance against the invaders, seeking to remain above the political matters. It helped anyone who sought refuge and thus involuntarily became a safe haven for refugees and resistance fighters. The Manchu’s also h ad 5 classes of people clearly defined;
The Manchu Ruler and his family
The Manchu Nobles and their families
Manchurians in general
Northern Chinese
Southern Chinese
Many loyal Ming soldiers and nobles sought refuge and help in Shaolin. Shaolin, although themselves passive, became a center of resistance. This was a thorn in the invaders side and needed to be dealt with, drastically, but –
The 2nd Burning of Shaolin
Shaolin was strong, their reputation great and their support from commoners even stronger. Finally, in 1647 ad, through the betrayal of an insider and large amounts of Ching loyal troops, armed with cannons, the original Shaolin temple in Henan was destroyed. The monks who remained to defend it were slaughtered, many fled to the Fukien Temple and for 30 years continued their resistance and their support of resistance fighters. This in turn led to the destruction of the Fukien temple, the remaining major temples and most of the lesser temples, as well as the destruction of Shaolin texts. ( these events have inspired many ‘Shaolin Temple’ movies including Shaolin Mystagogue )
From this time onwards Shaolin were outlawed and any practice of Shaolin Kung Fu punishable by death, much was lost. Most of the priceless scrolls of Shaolin Kung Fu, teachings and many treasures of knowledge and wisdom were lost. Shaolin monks and lay persons were now split into many directions, all initially operating in secret. These were those that;
continued their resistance and taught Kung Fu for the sole purpose of fighting and defeating the Chin’s. They were the fathers of secret resistance organizations know as the ‘Triads’, so named after a gift of the Ming Dynasty Emperor to the Shaolin of a jade triangle.
were devoted to the art. These passed down their learning from father to son or most apt student. In this process, much was lost but enough was maintained. Non of these styles is all of Shaolin but each have key elements.
reverted to being ‘just’ Buddhist priests.
migrated to many other countries including the US, and many oriental countries including Japan, Indonesia, Malaysia, Taiwan, etc…
Many great Chinese Fighting Martial Artist became famous during this time of strife and resistance ( mid 17th Century to 1899 ), some gaining great notoriety. Among these were Hung Hei-Kwun and his teachers from the temple, the Monk Sam Tak and the Abbot Chi Zin. But Shaolin monks were now outlawed. They h ad to go into hiding and could no longer be ‘Shaolin’ monks openly. This is a time when Tai Chi ‘styles’ flourished, a way of secretly training and teaching Kung Fu. The techniques were disguised, movements slowed, stances and toughness hidden, but not forgotten.
The Reopening of Shaolin
Around a century or more later, towards the start of 19th Century, the Shaolin Temples were reopened and included the 5th Shaolin Temple Kwantung (located around 200 km’s southwest of Fukien).
But the rulers of the day were still fearful of the power of the Fighting Shaolin Monks so they only allowed Shaolin to be used as purely religious purposes without allowing any Kung Fu or other martial art training by order of death. The underground, no longer Shaolin but Ming loyalists, were still very busy making life hard for the Ching’s.
The rebellion came to a de ad end with the failure of the Boxer rebellion. Now some 250 years later, after the ousting of the Ming’s, the Boxer Rebellion was to overthrow the Ching Dynasty and reinstate the original descendant of the Ming Dynasty. For decades, Chinese Martial Artists ( the Brits called this ‘funny’ style of fighting Boxing – and the name stuck ) prepared for this event. practicing hard Kung Fu and Chi Kung body hardening, they attacked. The Manchu’s, now armed with handguns and rifles, totally destroyed the Boxers.
This was the death of the Chinese resistance. Some tri ad members escaped to other countries, including the US, Korea, etc. Without a focus some/many tri ad members went into a new line of business (and their descendants still are in this line of work ). This caused another influx of Chinese martial arts into the Orient, the US and now also the new continent of Australia.
Weather this was related to the Boxer Rebellion or not, the Ching Dynasty debunked in 1911 (so well represented by the movie ‘The Last Emperor’ ). The time of Chaos and Hunger began.
The 3rd Burning of Shaolin
As with the previous times, Shaolin influence, power and Kung Fu ( although officially forbidden and punishable by death ) was still feared and forbidden even now almost 300 years after the Ching’s decree. This possibly led to the 3rd Burning of Shaolin in 1927 ad during Chiang Kai Check’s reign.
Chiang Kai Check himself was a great believer of Kung Fu and although he forbade all martial art practice he surrounded himself with Kung Fu fighting masters as his body guard. When he was being threatened and ousted by the newly forming Chinese Republic, he packed up as much Chinese treasure as he could, took his wife ( who recently died in the US aged 105 ) and 100 masters and moved to Taiwan. His arrival h ad a key influence on that country and greatly ‘enriched’ the country.
Cultural Revolution
The cultural revolution was against all matter of religion and martial arts or anything that would allow individuality, resistance or free thought. If you were seen to be preaching or teaching anything other than Mao’s’ words, you were immediately re-educated or imprisoned.
This was more disastrous to Shaolin Kung Fu (traditional Chinese Medicine and many ‘traditional type disciplines; even Ming Tombs were opened and the wood of the coffins used for furniture) than anything else as it attacked Shaolin teachings and style on all fronts, not just Kung Fu, but also Buddhism, Tao’ism, Healing and any type of organization other than Mao’s. This was the final death of Shaolin, worse than all three previous burnings!
3rd Area of Shaolin
After many successful Chinese Kung Fu movies by Bruce Lee ( presenting Kung Fu to the world ) and Jacky Chan ( introducing the concept of Shaolin ) and in particular Jet Li in the movie Shaolin Temple, Officials in Beijing ( means Northern capitol originally know as Peeking ) started to realize the potential of Shaolin as marketing tool, but also as heritage! However, the fear and distrust of Shaolin, its Kung Fu and power was deep. They knew that they needed some type of ‘replacement’, some type of art other than Tai Chi and Chi Kung that was hard, external and athletic to fill this emptiness. This was the replacement of Kung Fu by Wu Shu, an acrobatic art using Kung Fu movements and implements.
A respected Chinese official was given the task of breathing life back into Shaolin. As with many Chinese decisions, it was both a pragmatic decision as well as financial and historical. The key was to have an art that was dynamic and in spirit of Shaolin but not Kung Fu. Wu Shu was ideal for this purpose. it embodied the spirit of Shaolin by providing all the requirements for health and wellbeing as Kung Fu but focused more on flow and athleticism rather than technique and fighting. Wu Shu has grown and developed, with the many versions and adaptations of Kung Fu – in some cases there is very little difference between the two.
There was a problem though, as Shaolin and it’s idea was already ‘occupied’ by a whole thriving industry called Shaolin Village and many so called Shaolin temple training Schools. The re-opening of the Shaolin temple by the “Grand Abbot” Master Su Xi who’s kindness and dedication seem so much similar as the original founder of Shaolin, gives hope to a new era of Shaolin teaching and Spirit. But for all his good teaching and kindness, he was also being used.
Animal Wu Shu is being practiced, but not the Shaolin 5 Animals but a new breed of modern, very athletic and well developed Animal styles including;
Monkey
Eagle
Crane
Snake
Mantis
The current Abbot of Shaolin the venerable has been in place for 10+ years now. He or the Chinese government have just cleared all the schools and the village surrounding Shaolin allowing only one to be there, the official Chinese Government Shaolin Temple training School. All schools, some numbering up to 8000 students, have been moved to the nearby major city of Kerfeng ( possibly wrong spelling, right sound ). Shaolin and the area around it is being prepared to be possibly a tourist and martial art trap or a heritage site. Time will tell.
The most curious thing about Wu Shu is that they actually import Muay Thai fighters to train Wu Shu fighting. In a way it is in tradition of ‘learning’ from the enemy. For many centuries leading up to the 20th, Kung Fu fighters and Muay Thai fighters challenged each other to prove which style was superior. This was a regular challenge between the two traditional styles and fighters for the honour of the style and country. Death in these was not unusual.
Golden Era
Shaolin’s 1st Golden Era started with the ascension to the throne of the Tang Dynasty son who they saved. The second Golden era of Shaolin came during the Ming Dynasty with much cooperation between the Emperors Palace and Shaolin. Now with the full force of the Chinese Government behind them, efforts to have Wu Shu in the Olympics and over 1 billion people training in Wu Shu, Kung Fu, Tai Chi and Chi Kung, we can consider this the third golden era not only for Kung Fu and Wu Shu but for all peaceful martial arts ( I believe that violent and aggressive MA are a recessive breed ). As a martial artist in body, heart and spirit, it is a good time to be alive!
Many martial arts acknowledge, even boast to be influenced by Shaolin. What is true and what note is irrelevant. In today’s age it would be impossible to extract what influenced what, where and how. It is more important that the spirit of Shaolin is alive in many different forms. Be it in Shaolin Wu Shu, be is Shaolin derived Kung Fu/Wing Chung or even the ‘Fist of China’ as was Karate once known; Shaolin is in the spirit and heart not in the strength of your punch and as such should be celebrated.
Shaolin Kung Fu is a way of health, a way of life and a way of being, we just use martial arts as an exercise!